1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vehicle alarms for alerting a driver as a vehicle closely approaches a curb or other object, particularly in the course of parking the vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to such vehicle alarms that are actuated by coming into contact with the curb or other object.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Automobiles are becoming more and more expensive, and are viewed now more than ever as status symbols. Many people make vehicle purchasing decisions based almost entirely on aesthetic reasons rather than functional ones. As a result, many automobile owners desire to maintain their vehicles in prime condition, and will go to great lengths to keep them from being scratched, dented, or otherwise damaged. When a vehicle does happen to become damaged, the owner is faced with the prospect of spending large amounts of money to restore the vehicle's appearance.
One act that often results in costly and unsightly damage to vehicles is parking a vehicle on a street against a curb. As a vehicle approaches a curb, the vehicle body is often in the driver's line of sight and prevents the driver from seeing the curb. Thus, the driver typically must estimate the distance between the vehicle and the curb. If that estimate is inaccurate, a portion of the vehicle can impact the curb.
In addition, most cities have regulations that dictate a maximum allowable distance that a vehicle may be parked from a curb, forcing drivers to park relatively close to the curb. Parking close to the curb also reduces the risk of the vehicle being hit by a passing motorist. In attempting to park very close to a curb, however, driver error can cause significant damage to the vehicle, resulting in expensive repairs.
Parking space is quite limited in many highly populated or highly trafficked areas, forcing drivers to parallel park into very small spaces. For many drivers, parallel parking is a difficult task and often results in a tire, wheel, or other portion of the vehicle contacting with the curb, frequently with sufficient force to cause damage to the vehicle.
Others have attempted to design devices that alert motorists as the vehicle they are driving closely approaches a curb. One such prior art device comprises a curb feeler formed of a flexible metal arm attached to the metallic vehicle body to project outwardly from the vehicle a selected distance. As the feeler comes into contact with the curb, the feeler is vibrated and generates a scraping noise. The vibration resonates through the feeler body and into the metal vehicle structure, with the vehicle body acting as a sound board to amplify the noise to a level that can be heard by the driver. However, with many of today's vehicle bodies being made of materials other than metal, such as plastic and fiberglass, conventional metallic feelers do not work well on such vehicles. Plastic and fiberglass body panels do not provide a significant sound board effect, greatly reducing the noise created by contact between a metallic feeler and a curb.
Yet another prior art alarm device includes a system having a sonar emitter for emitting sonic and/or ultrasonic waves outwardly from the vehicle in a generally orthogonal direction to the vehicle body. A sonar detector is mounted to the vehicle to detect reflected waves and determine the distance between the vehicle and the object reflecting those waves. An indicator is mounted inside the vehicle to warn the driver that the vehicle is approaching the object. It will be appreciated that such systems can be quite expensive and normally must be built into the structure of an automobile at the time the automobile is manufactured. They are therefore not a practical solution for many vehicle owners.
Accordingly, there continues to be a need for a vehicle alarm device capable of reliably alerting an operator of a vehicle when the vehicle is within a preselected distance from a curb or other object. In addition, there continues to be a need for such a device that is relatively inexpensive and therefore a practical solution for any vehicle. The present invention addresses these needs and others.